


Reserved

by punkbean



Category: Mortal Instruments Series - Cassandra Clare, Shadowhunter Chronicles - All Media Types
Genre: M/M, Tumblr Prompt, alec is oblivious
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-04-01
Updated: 2016-04-03
Packaged: 2018-05-30 10:54:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 15,740
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6420955
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/punkbean/pseuds/punkbean
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"“Please?” Beautiful Man asked, leaning down and gazing imploringly at Alec.</p><p>Alec felt his heart melt just a little bit, but he shook his head. “Nope.”</p><p>Beautiful Man straightened up and sighed. “I didn’t want it to have to come to this,” he said. He hoisted his bag up onto the overhead luggage rack and slid into Alec's row.</p><p>Alec supposed he could deal with sitting beside him. </p><p>But Beautiful Man kept on sliding.</p><p>Alec had a moment to admire his butt, but before he could register what was happening, Beautiful Man sat in his lap."</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Alec hoisted his backpack onto his shoulder and started walking.

Isabelle always teased him about the fact that he was always early to things, and usually he ignored it, but this time he had been even earlier than usual. 

He was going to Washington DC for a long weekend with his siblings and their partners. Simon was doing a show with his band, and Izzy had managed to rope the rest of them into coming along.

In all honesty, Alec didn’t mind. It was an excuse to get away from work for a while, and it was always nice to spend time with Izzy and Jace. 

Okay, so maybe he was a  _ little  _ bitter that they both had partners and he was single. But he could live with that. 

He’d had boyfriends over the years, but the longest any of them had lasted was a few months, and now both of his younger siblings had long-term partners and he was still very much single. 

Isabelle kept telling him to use dating websites or apps, but those had never appealed to Alec. He knew it was possible to find love there, but he couldn’t imagine making himself a dating profile or anything. Just the thought of it was enough to make him shudder. 

The thought of Isabelle setting up a profile for him was even worse. 

He had arrived 45 minutes early for his train. He always preferred being early than late, but he was beginning to regret it now. 

Sitting in a train station could be entertaining, but he wouldn’t let himself listen to music – he wanted to save iPod battery for the train journey – and people-watching got boring after an hour. 

Maybe it would have been more fun if he wasn’t so single. 

So as soon as his train’s platform was on the departure boards, he left his seat. 

After stopping at a shop and buying more snacks than he was likely to need on a 3-hour train journey, he set off to the platform. 

The train was still relatively empty when he boarded. He hadn’t reserved a seat, so he slid into an empty row of two. At least then he was less likely to have anyone sitting beside him.

He still had a good fifteen minutes before the train was due to leave, but he knew he wouldn’t be able to settle properly until the train was moving.

Whenever somebody came into the carriage, Alec looked up. Most people getting on looked like they were going to Washington for business trips. He supposed they wouldn’t be too annoying to sit next to.

Alec started to relax when there was only five minutes left until the train was due to leave the station. The carriage was nowhere near full, so hopefully anyone who came in the last few minutes before the train left would just sit in one of the empty rows.

He glanced at his phone again. Three minutes until the train was due to leave.

Two minutes. 

One minute.

He was just about to find his iPod when the carriage doors slid open again. At first Alec didn’t think anything of it – he supposed it was normal for people to be late to get the train – but then a shadow fell over him.

He looked up from where he’d been in the process of unzipping his backpack.

The first thought that ran through his head was  _ beautiful _ . 

The man looming over him was tall – very tall – and wearing eye makeup. His hair was swept effortlessly away from his face, and his cheekbones looked like they could cut glass.

Alec just had time to glance down to his outfit – and wow, his jeans were extremely tight – before the man spoke.

“That’s my seat,” he said.

Alec was caught up in the man’s voice for a moment before he registered what he had said. He cursed himself for being too distracted by this guy’s amazing face.

“I– seat? Yours?” Alec asked. 

He was tempted to try and jump out of the train window. Why was he incapable of talking to attractive men like a normal human being?

Beautiful Man nodded. “Yes. I reserved this seat. You’re in it.”

Alec resisted the urge to sigh. The train had just started moving and there were plenty more empty seats, why couldn’t he just go and sit in one of those?

“There are other seats,” he said. He mentally congratulated himself for speaking without tripping over the words or anything.

Beautiful Man raised an eyebrow. He really was beautiful. It was a shame he was shaping up to be an asshole. “Yes, but I reserved this one. I would like to sit there.”

He had a trace of an unusual accent. Alec wondered where he was from for a moment, but he forced himself to stop. He had to stand his ground. “Well, I got here first. You’ll have to sit somewhere else,” he told him.

“I reserved the seat before you sat there,” Beautiful Man pointed out. 

Usually, Alec would have just moved, but now he’d stood his ground it would have felt like giving up if he’d stopped. “Maybe you should have got here earlier if you were so desperate for the seat.”

Beautiful Man looked a bit put out, and Alec felt bad for a moment. But he convinced himself that he only felt bad for him because he was beautiful.

“Please?” Beautiful Man asked, leaning down and gazing imploringly at Alec.

Alec felt his heart melt just a little bit, but he shook his head. “Nope.”

Beautiful Man straightened up and sighed. “I didn’t want it to have to come to this,” he said. He hoisted his bag up onto the overhead luggage rack.

For a moment, Alec thought he was going to go and sit in the row in front. That would have been fine. Alec could have forgotten about his beautiful face and the way his shirt rode up to expose a strip of smooth, brown stomach when he put his bag on the luggage rack.

But no. When his bag was secure, he slid into Alec’s row.

Alec supposed he could deal with sitting beside him. Maybe he’d be able to surreptitiously admire his face if he pretended to be preoccupied with his music or something.

But Beautiful Man kept on sliding.

Alec had a moment to admire his butt, but before he could register what was happening, Beautiful Man sat in his lap.

Really, genuinely, literally sat in his lap.

Alec was too shocked to say anything as the man shuffled to get comfortable. 

“What are you doing?” he managed to choke out, trying not to think about the fact that his (very cute) butt was  _ in his lap. _

“I’m sitting in my seat,” Beautiful Man said, he smiled over his shoulder at Alec as if this was a normal thing that normal people did.

Alec stared at him. He could keep arguing, or he could stay still and hope that Beautiful Man would get bored and sit elsewhere.

He turned both ideas over in his head but decided that the latter was better. The man seemed stubborn and Alec didn’t want to spend the whole journey fighting with him.

Beautiful Man shifted and Alec bit his lip hard.

His butt had brushed against Alec’s crotch just right and now Alec was willing himself not to get an erection. There couldn’t possibly be a less appropriate time to get an erection than when a beautiful stranger was sitting on his lap on the train. 

Alec was busy trying to think about that time Jace got drunk and tried to show him straight porn to ask about the differences between that and straight porn when Beautiful Man moved again.

For a moment Alec thought he was going to move into the seat beside Alec, but instead he just sat sideways, his back against the train window and his ass on Alec’s thigh instead of directly on his crotch.

“I’m Magnus,” he said, smiling brightly at Alec.

Alec felt nearly all of his annoyance disappear. He knew he was being ridiculously shallow, but it was hard to be angry when Magnus was smiling at him like that. “Alec,” he said. 

Magnus folded his legs. Alec’s eyes were drawn to the movement, but he found himself staring at his ridiculously long legs for more time than was strictly necessary. 

When he looked back up to Magnus’ face, Magnus looked amused. “So, Alec,” he began, then paused. “Can I call you Alexander?”

Alec didn’t know what to say. He hadn’t thought that people like Magnus existed. “If you want,” he said carefully. 

“Wonderful,” Magnus said, beaming at him. Alec felt his heart beat a little faster. “So, Alexander. Anything waiting for you in DC? Any _ one? _ ” he asked. He sounded perfectly calm, as if he was used to starting conversations while sitting on strangers’ laps. 

Maybe he was used to it. Maybe this was some sort of strange hobby.

“My brother and sister,” Alec told him. He considered being antisocial and letting the conversation stop there, but he had a feeling Magnus would keep talking to him even if he didn’t respond. (Plus, part of him did want to keep talking to Magnus. Even if he was a bit strange). “What about you?”

Magnus looked pleased that Alec was continuing the conversation. “I’m going for work. A meeting tomorrow afternoon and a networking type of event on Saturday afternoon.”

“What do you work as?” Alec asked. 

“I’m in fashion,” Magnus said. Alec had expected an answer like that. “Fashion marketing at the moment, but I’d love to go into the more designy side of things. What do you do?” 

Alec was almost surprised to be asked. People didn’t usually take much of an interest in him. Especially if they were as beautiful as Magnus. Maybe Magnus was a special case. He was sitting in his lap, after all. 

“I work for a gym. Mostly archery classes,” he explained.

Magnus hummed and squeezed Alec’s bicep. “I should have guessed that,” he said, smirking at him.

Alec didn’t know what to say. Was Magnus flirting with him? Maybe he was just one of those people who flirted with everyone.

“Are you uncomfortable?” Magnus asked, looking concerned all of a sudden. “I can get off you if you want.”

A few minutes ago, Alec might have jumped at the chance to make Magnus move, but now he looked genuinely worried so maybe he wasn’t a complete asshole. 

For some reason Alec shook his head and patted Magnus’ leg. “You can stay there if you really want to.”

Magnus looked pleased and draped his arm across Alec’s shoulders, folding his legs. “Good. You have a very comfortable lap.”

“Thanks. You have a comfortable butt,” Alec said before he could stop himself. 

He was ready to apologise profusely, but Magnus laughed loudly and tipped his head back against the window. Alec had a moment to appreciate his sharp jawline before he opened his eyes and looked at him again. “Thank you, Alexander,” he said, squeezing Alec’s shoulder tight.

* * *

 

As it turned out, the two of them had quite a lot in common. 

They chatted about light, casual things for a while. Music (even though Magnus liked more dancey music, they had a few common favourites), movies (neither of them watched many movies but they had seen and liked a lot of the same ones), TV shows (Alec didn’t watch much TV; Magnus did. Alec now had a long list of recommendations).

Soon, though, they moved onto heavier topics. 

“Where are you from?” Alec asked, trying not to get too transfixed by a lock of Magnus’ hair that had come loose from its style and was swaying in time with the train’s movements. 

“Indonesia,” Magnus said, tapping his fingers gently against Alec’s shoulder in a gentle rhythm. 

Alec tried not to concentrate on the way his hand kept brushing against Magnus’ hip. “Wow. What made you move to America?” he asked, looking up at his face.

“My stepfather,” Magnus said, laughing just a bit too brightly for it to be sincere.

Alec bit his lip. He didn’t want to pry into Magnus’ life – they barely knew each other, really – but Magnus did have a sort of faraway look in his eye, and his smile was steadily dropping.

“You don’t get along?” he guessed. Hopefully that was vague enough that it wouldn’t upset Magnus too much, but he could elaborate if he wanted to.

Magnus gave a short laugh, this one completely devoid of humour. “That’s an understatement,” he muttered. “Let’s just say he wasn’t exactly supportive when I came out. Not that he was particularly supportive before that, either.”

“I’m sorry,” Alec said. He felt bad for mentioning it now. He didn’t want to dredge up bad memories for Magnus.

“It’s fine,” Magnus said, but he still wasn’t smiling. 

Alec squeezed his knee automatically. The only person he’d ever really comforted when they were upset was Izzy, but he wasn’t exactly going to give Magnus a hug and a kiss on the forehead at this point in time (no matter how much he wanted to), so he settled for the knee squeeze.

Magnus looked slightly surprised at the touch, but he smiled down at Alec. Even though the smile wasn’t as bright as it had been before, it was better than his previous blank expression. “What about you, Alexander? Do you get along with your parents?”

Alec shrugged. “Sort of. I get along okay with them but I can tell that they still aren’t completely comfortable with me being gay,” he explained.

“So you are gay,” Magnus said, breaking into a more genuine smile. “I caught you staring at me earlier but I wasn’t completely sure.”

Alec’s eyes widened. He was suddenly very aware of the fact that his hand was still on Magnus’ knee. “Staring at you?” he asked, trying his best to sound shocked. “When?”

Magnus laughed. “When I got on the train. I was probably leaning over you for almost twenty seconds and you didn’t say anything, you just stared at my face,” he said, rubbing Alec’s shoulder.

Alec opened his mouth to defend himself, but he couldn’t think of anything to say, so closed it again.

“And also when I was putting my bag up on the rack. You were looking at my stomach,” Magnus said, raising his eyebrows.

Alec could feel himself going red. “I was not!”

“And you were looking at my butt just before I sat down,” Magnus added.

There was no point in denying it, but Alec still shook his head. “You can’t prove it.”

Magnus shifted so that both arms were around Alec’s neck, his lips just about brushing against Alec’s ear as he whispered. “Are you going to deny it?”

Alec’s breath caught in his throat. Magnus had moved enough that his butt was dangerously close to Alec’s crotch again. 

“I– you– I don’t–” Alec didn’t know what he was trying to say, but whatever it was, it wasn’t coming out.

Magnus laughed and let go of Alec, but he kept one arm around his shoulders. “I’m only joking. Well. I’m not joking about you looking at me. But I don’t mind.”

Alec glanced down at his hand on Magnus’ knee. “You don’t mind me looking at you?” he asked.

“Nope,” Magnus agreed. He slid his hand along Alec's shoulder until his thumb brushed against his neck. “You’ve been sitting down the whole time but your torso is beautiful,” he said.

Alec was left speechless. Magnus was pretty much the definition of beauty, and he was calling Alec beautiful? “You’re more beautiful,” he blurted out.

Magnus laughed. “Is this a competition?” 

Alec shook his head and forced himself to keep looking at Magnus’ face, even if he was so handsome it made Alec want to cry. “No. But you’re way out of my league.”

Magnus put his hand on Alec’s cheek. Alec tried extremely hard not to freak out as Magnus tilted his face up.

“Nobody should make you believe that you’re not good enough,” Magnus said gently, brushing his thumb against Alec’s cheek. 

Magnus’ other arm was still around Alec’s neck, and Alec could feel himself getting lost in Magnus’ eyes, leaning closer and closer to him until –

“Can I see your tickets, please?” 

Alec quickly drew back and looked up. The train conductor – a young woman – looked mostly bored, but somewhat amused by their position.

Magnus stood from Alec’s lap and reached up to pull his ticket out of his bag. 

Alec tore his eyes away from where Magnus’ shirt was riding up again and put his own bag on the seat beside him, pulling out his own ticket.

The conductor checked their tickets and moved on.

For a moment, Alec thought Magnus might sit in the seat beside him instead of back in his lap. He was just about to move his bag out of the seat when Magnus was planting his butt right back in Alec’s lap. 

“Do you need to pee or anything?” Magnus asked, once again wrapping his arm around Alec’s shoulders.

Alec shook his head. He hesitated for a moment, but Magnus didn’t seem to shy away from physical affection, so Alec wrapped his own arm around Magnus’ waist.

Magnus looked very pleased about this. He settled more comfortably into Alec’s lap, squeezing his shoulder tight.

They stared at each other for a moment longer. 

Alec thought that if Magnus kept looking at him like that, he’d do something stupid, so he gestured to his backpack.

“Are you hungry?” he asked.

The question sounded lame even to his own ears, but Magnus grinned. “What have you got?”

* * *

 

An hour and a half later, Alec found himself still with Magnus in his lap, but now the seat beside them was heaped with empty wrappers.

The train was beginning to slow down as they rolled into DC. 

Most of Alec’s mind was occupied with the fact that Magnus was still laughing at something Alec had said, but part of him was wondering what would happen when they got off the train.

Yes, Magnus had just spent three hours in Alec’s lap. 

Fine, Alec had been extremely close to getting an erection more than once.

Okay, Alec hadn’t found it so easy to get along with someone in a long time.

But that didn’t mean Magnus would want to keep in contact with him. He’d been sweet about telling Alec that he wasn’t out of his league, but behind the silly jokes and dry remarks, Magnus did seem like a genuinely sweet and lovely person, so it was hardly out of the question that he was just being friendly.

As the train got slower and slower, Alec started to panic.

He didn’t want to let Magnus slip through his fingers, but the thought of being rejected by him was terrifying.

“We should clear these up,” Magnus said. They were just pulling into the station. 

Alec gathered the wrappers and stuffed them into the side pocket of his backpack. “I hate it when people just leave stuff laying around for people to clear up,” he sighed. 

Magnus was holding onto his shoulder so he didn’t get shoved off Alec’s lap as he put the wrappers in his bag. “I know. I don’t go on a second date with people if they do that on the first date,” he said. When Alec looked up, Magnus was watching his face.

The train had almost slowed to a standstill.

They were silent for a moment.

Then Magnus stood up.

Alec’s lap felt strangely empty and cold without him there.

“My seat was even better with you in it, Alexander,” Magnus said, squeezing his shoulder once more before reaching up to get his bag.

Alec knew this was his chance. He should ask Magnus for his number, or whether he wanted to meet up over the weekend. 

But Magnus got his bag down and pulled his jacket on, smiling down at Alec. “Are you coming?”

Alec nodded and shrugged his own jacket on, swinging his backpack onto one shoulder. “Yeah. Sorry.”

“I didn’t make your legs numb by sitting on them the whole way, did I?” Magnus asked, glancing down at Alec’s legs as he stood. “You look even better standing than you did sitting down,” he added, winking.

Alec laughed and followed Magnus off the train. The platform was busy, but he and Magnus stuck close to each other.

“Are you meeting anyone, or?” Alec asked, glancing around the station. If Magnus was meeting anyone, he was sure they would be just as fashionable as Magnus. 

(He would say just as beautiful as well, but he was sure nobody else could be that attractive).

Magnus shook his head. “I just have to find my hotel. Then I suppose I’ll get settled in,” he said. Alec couldn’t decipher his expression. “What about you?”

“My sister should be waiting for me somewhere,” Alec told him, glancing around to see if he could spot Izzy anywhere. 

“Right,” Magnus said, glancing down at his shoes and taking a deep breath. “I suppose I’ll see you later, Alexander.”

Magnus turned around. He walked away from Alec for two steps.

“Magnus,” Alec called after him, his heartbeat quickening.

Magnus turned around. Alec still couldn’t figure out his expression. He panicked. “When are you going back to New York?” 

“Sunday,” Magnus said, poking at the handle of his suitcase. 

Alec felt himself deflate. “Oh. I’m going back Tuesday,” he said. “Well…” he trailed off. This was his last chance. He could ask Magnus for his number now and they could see each other again. 

Magnus smiled, but Alec still couldn’t work out what he was feeling. “Well indeed,” he said. A man in a suit walked in between them. 

By the time he had passed, Magnus wasn’t smiling anymore. “Bye, Alec,” he said, then he disappeared into the crowd.

Alec didn’t feel anything for a second, then he felt a wave of panic.

He followed in the direction Magnus had gone, but he couldn’t see him or his green coat or his perfect hair anywhere.

Then he felt a hand on his arm. 

His heart lurched. 

He turned around expecting Magnus’ grinning face and some silly remark about Alec panicking over nothing, but instead he got Izzy beaming at him.

For the first time in Alec’s life, he was disappointed to see his sister.

“What’s wrong?” Isabelle asked as soon as she saw Alec’s face.

“Nothing,” Alec said immediately. If he told Isabelle, she would probably launch a city-wide search party for Magnus. 

Isabelle reached up to put her hand on Alec’s shoulder. “Did you have a bad journey?”

Alec hesitated. The pressure of her hand was just making him think about Magnus. He couldn’t tell her he’d had a bad journey – that would be one of the worst lies he could tell – so he just shrugged. “It’s nothing,” he muttered. 

Isabelle looked suspicious, but she took his arm and pulled him through the station – in the opposite direction of where Magnus had gone – in search of the others.


	2. Chapter 2

Alec knew he was being ridiculous but he couldn’t quite shake the feeling of disappointment and sadness.

He always tried his best not to regret things too much, but ever since Magnus said goodbye at the train station, Alec had felt like he’d made a big mistake.

Of course he tried not to regret it, trying to tell himself things like ‘everything happens for a reason’, but maybe he had been meant to ask for Magnus’ number and he’d been too stupid to do so. 

He knew Isabelle could tell that something was wrong. She knew him better than anyone else, and even if he could convince the others that he was fine, she didn’t believe him.

It was Thursday evening. Only a few hours since Alec had last seen Magnus. 

They had just arrived at the hotel and checked into their rooms.

Alec was fine with being single, but that didn’t mean he didn’t feel lonely going into his room by himself. Izzy and Simon had their room together, as did Jace and Clary, but Alec was alone.

He sat on the bed and switched the TV on, determined not to let himself think too much. 

The news was on. A reporter was standing outside Capitol Building. Alec knew it was ridiculous and hopeless, but he kept scanning the background. Maybe a certain tall and very beautiful man would pass behind the reporter.

After a few minutes, Alec changed the channel. He was being ridiculous. Even if Magnus was there, what was Alec going to do? Run all the way to Capitol Hill to find him? 

(Of course he would. The thought of Magnus rejecting him was still terrifying, but then Alec would know that he wouldn’t have had a chance. At least then he wouldn’t be left wondering  _ what if? _ ).

He settled for watching some action movie. He stared at the screen, not really registering what was going on in the film. He should have asked Magnus what hotel he was staying in. Where his meetings were. 

At least then he could have tried to go to those areas and hoped that he might bump into Magnus. 

He knew he wouldn’t be able to concentrate on anything all weekend. Wherever they were, he would most likely be looking out for Magnus, no matter how unlikely it was that they would actually bump into each other again.

He was thinking about how he would get away from Izzy, Jace, Simon and Clary if he did see Magnus when there was a knock on his door.

For a moment, Alec’s heart stopped.

What if Magnus had somehow found him? He seemed like a man who had connections. Maybe he had phoned around the hotels in DC and eventually found him.   
Alec forced himself to stay calm and go to the door. He unlocked it and swung it open. 

Of course it wasn’t Magnus. It was Izzy, and her damp hair was twisted up into a messy bun. 

“Can I come in?” she asked.

Alec stepped back to let her do so. He sat on the edge of his bed, and Izzy came to sit beside him. 

“What’s going on, Alec?” she asked, looping her arm through his own and gazing up at him. “And don’t try and say you’re tired. You might be able to fool Jace with that but I know you.”

“I’m fine, Izzy,” Alec told her. He felt bad for lying to her, but telling her about Magnus wouldn’t do him any good, either. “It’s just…something. I’ll talk to you about it when we’re back home, okay?” 

He didn’t want to ruin Izzy’s weekend by making her worry. She had planned this trip and he wanted her to have a good time.

At least if he told her about Magnus in New York, he could get away from her. If he told her now, she would spend the whole weekend trying to talk to him about it.

“Are you sure?” she asked, rubbing his arm. “You look sad.”

Alec smiled at her. “I’ll be fine. Won’t Simon be missing you?” he asked, nudging her gently. 

She laughed and shook her head. “No. He put Star Wars on. A hurricane wouldn't make him move.”

“Nothing will take him away from his Star Wars,” Alec agreed, pressing his cheek against the top of Izzy’s head for a moment. 

“Do you want me to stay with you?” she asked quietly, squeezing his arm.

Alec shook his head. “I need to shower. You go back and take pictures of Simon when he starts crying,” he said.

Isabelle smiled and leaned over to kiss his cheek. “Okay. If you need anything, text me,” she said firmly. She had that look on her face that said she meant it, and would be very angry if he didn’t ask for her help if he needed it.

“I will. Promise,” Alec said. He pulled her into a quick hug before she left. 

He still felt sort of shitty, but despite not telling Isabelle anything, he felt better after seeing her.

* * *

 

Magnus hated going on these trips for work.

He liked to travel, but when he went anywhere for work he had to spend time making small talk with people who thought they were better than him. 

Honestly, he spent most of his time on these trips missing his cat. 

At least Chairman Meow would be having a nice time staying with his Uncle Ragnor. 

On the train, he had begun to convince himself that maybe this trip would be different. 

He had been pissed off when he saw Alec in his seat. He didn’t care how stupidly handsome he was. He had booked that seat, and maybe it was petty to try and kick someone out of it, but it was the principle more than anything. 

He wasn’t sure what had come over him when he decided to sit in Alec’s lap. 

A mix of annoyance, tiredness and determination had made him sit on top of a complete stranger before he could even stop himself.

As it turned out, it was a good decision. Alec was handsome and funny and muscular and gay.

He spent a lot of time on the journey trying to pluck up the courage to ask for Alec’s number. He knew he would regret it if he didn’t ask.

He got more and more worried as they neared Washington, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t seem to get the words out. 

And then they were in the station, and Magnus didn’t know what to do, so he walked away.

But Alec had called after him.

Magnus had turned to look at Alec, and he was so tall and beautiful and for a moment Magnus let himself think that maybe they could work out. 

He could step back towards Alec and ask for his number and Alec would say yes and they’d text each other and meet up over the weekend and it would be fun.

But before he could speak, he heard a familiar voice echoing in his head. 

_ ‘You’re a freak.’  _

_ ‘It’s your fault she died.’ _

_ ‘Nobody could ever love you.’ _

He froze. No matter how hard he tried to love himself and convince himself that he was a decent person, his stepfather’s words always seemed to come back and hit him when he least needed it. 

So he said goodbye to Alec and walked away. And regretted it almost immediately.

He turned around, but the spot where Alec had been standing was empty. 

Maybe Alec hadn’t cared. Maybe he had just been humouring the weirdo who went and sat on people on trains.

Magnus  forced himself not to get upset – at least not until he was alone in his room – and started walking again.

* * *

 

Friday morning was largely uneventful. 

They didn’t have anything planned for the day, so for once, Alec let himself stay in bed late. 

Isabelle managed to convince everyone to go for brunch, then led them to a street lined with shops.

“I know we don’t have anything planned but we’re not hanging around the hotel all day. We might as well make the most of being here, right?” she asked. 

“By going shopping?” Jace asked, folding his arms and raising his eyebrows at her. “We have all of these shops in New York.”

“Yes, but we’re in Washington now. If you hate it that much, you can go back to the hotel on your own,” Isabelle said firmly. 

Alec was always impressed by her ability to make Jace stop whining.

They wandered around the shops for a while. When Isabelle, Clary and Simon went into a shopping mall, Jace and Alec went to sit in a cafe and wait for them to finish.

Alec’s idea of shopping was finding a plain shirt in his size and buying it without trying it on.

Jace didn’t actually mind shopping, but didn’t like waiting around while the others tried things on, so coffee with Alec was the better option.

Soon they were sitting near the back of a coffee shop, Jace with a cappuccino and Alec with an Americano. 

“Are you okay?” Jace asked when they were sitting down, pouring a sachet of sugar into his coffee.

“I’m fine,” Alec agreed automatically. “Why?”

Jace shrugged. “I don’t know. You just seem…quiet. I mean, you’re always sort of quiet, but you seem more quiet than usual,” he explained.

Jace had never been the kind of person to talk about feelings, but Alec could appreciate that he tried his best. In fact, apart from his parents, Alec had been the most worried about coming out to Jace.

His worries were unwarranted, though. Jace had hugged him – which had been a little awkward but it was nice of him – and insisted that he would come to gay bars and be Alec’s wingman if he wanted (an idea too horrifying to even entertain).

“I’m fine,” Alec repeated, taking a sip of his coffee even though it was still too hot. 

Jace raised his eyebrows. “Is it a boy?” he asked.

And Alec had thought that Jace was oblivious. He considered lying, but instead shrugged. “Sort of. It’s complicated.”

“Do you need me to go and kick anyone’s ass?” Jace asked. 

Alec laughed and shook his head. “No. I’m really fine, I just need time,” he said. “Don’t tell Izzy it’s about a boy, by the way. She was trying to make me talk to her about it yesterday.”

“No wonder,” Jace said. “You looked like you were in another world.”

“I’ll really be fine,” Alec said. He knew repeating things would just make his siblings doubt him, but he could wait and tell them about Magnus at some point later.

Maybe it would be a funny anecdote in a few months’ time and they would laugh and Alec wouldn’t feel such crippling regret at the thought of him. 

He decided it probably wouldn’t be a funny anecdote for a long time.

He managed to get Jace talking about work. This was an easier conversation. They both worked at the gym: Alec taught archery, but Jace was more of a personal trainer. He was more social, and could easily connect with his clients, while Alec preferred to keep something of a distance between himself and the people he taught.

Alec kept up with the conversation easily, letting Jace complain about clients who thought they knew better than him and ended up hurting himself, but he couldn’t help thinking about how grateful he was to have Izzy and Jace.

Izzy was more obvious about it when she knew something was wrong, and she was the kind of person to come to his hotel room and try to fuss over him. 

Alec had thought that Jace didn’t know anything was wrong, but he should have known better. Of course Jace would find a time when they were both alone and ask about it.

It was sweet, really, and he found himself trying to suppress a grin as Jace spoke.

* * *

 

Isabelle enjoyed shopping, but it was always more enjoyable if she was with Clary or Simon. Or both of them.

They always ended up spending more time messing around and trying on ridiculous clothes than they did looking for things they actually liked, but that was what made it fun.

They had just come out of a store and were still laughing at some of the more questionable things they had tried on, when Isabelle froze, grabbing Clary’s arm.

Clary turned to face her, frowning. “What’s wrong?” 

“Over there,” Izzy said. 

Clary followed her gaze, but still looked confused. “Over where? What is it?” 

Simon looked equally confused. “Is it someone you know?” 

Isabelle shook her head. “No. Well. I follow him on Instagram,” she said.

“You know I don’t care about you following guys on Instagram but I’m your boyfriend and I’m right here,” Simon teased before turning to look in the direction she was staring in. “Which one is it? The one with the muscles?”

“No. Ew. He looks like Jace,” Isabelle said, scrunching up her nose.

“What do you mean ‘ew’?” Clary asked indignantly. 

Isabelle rolled her eyes fondly. “Jace is handsome but he’s also my brother. I wouldn't follow someone who looked like him on Instagram because I thought he was cute.”

Clary shrugged and tried to follow Izzy’s gaze again. “Who is it, then?” 

Isabelle had lost sight of him when she looked at Clary, but after a quick scan of the people in the area, she realised that he was walking towards them.

She was freaking out just a little bit, but he didn’t look like he was in a hurry, so she stepped across Simon and held one hand up in a wave.

“Magnus Bane?” she asked, grinning.

“That’s me,” Magnus agreed, turning to face her. “Can I help you?”

Clary and Simon were lurking behind her, murmuring to each other. Isabelle ignored them and focussed on Magnus.

She had followed him on Instagram months, maybe even more than a year, ago. He was attractive, had a cat, and he could do things with an eyeshadow palette that Izzy could only dream of. 

And he was even more attractive in person, which was annoying. Maybe Izzy wouldn’t have felt intimidated by him if he didn’t look perfect even without an Instagram filter.

“I…uh, Instagram. I follow you,” she said. She didn’t let herself linger on the fact that she’d stuttered in front of him. “I love your makeup. And your cat is cute. What are you doing in DC?” she asked, hoping that she could redeem herself by chatting to him like a normal person.

Magnus smiled. “Thank you. You’re not so bad at makeup yourself. I can only get my eyeliner to be that sharp in my wildest dreams,” he said wistfully. 

Isabelle tried not to freak out about the fact that  _ Magnus Bane _ had just complimented her eyeliner as he continued.

“I’m here for work. Meetings and things. Very boring. Are you from here?” he asked.

Isabelle shook her head. “My boyfriend is doing a show with his band tomorrow night. My brothers are here for the weekend,” she said, gesturing towards Simon. She didn’t want to be the embarrassing person who got over-friendly with someone who was kind of famous, but she took a chance. “Come along to the show if you want," she suggested, keeping her voice light so Magnus might think she was joking if it freaked him out.

Magnus laughed and slid his hands into his jacket pockets. “I’d love to, but I have a thing for work, I’m afraid.” 

He sounded genuinely apologetic. Isabelle could have hugged him. “That’s a shame. I’ll tweet you next time they do a show in New York,” she teased.

Magnus chuckled and pulled his phone out of his pocket to check the time. “I should probably go. I’m not entirely sure where I’m going for this meeting and I don’t want to get lost.”

“Okay. Have fun,” Isabelle said. Magnus smiled and was about to step away when she put a hand on his arm. “Wait. Can we take a picture together quickly?” 

Magnus looked amused. “Sure. Do you want to pose or what?” 

Isabelle handed her phone to Simon, who hastily gave it to Clary. 

“One silly pose and one normal?” she suggested. 

Magnus seemed satisfied with that, and wrapped an arm around Izzy’s shoulder. Isabelle wrapped her own arm around Magnus’ waist and grinned at Clary.

Clary took a few photos to make sure neither of them were blinking, then Isabelle glanced up at Magnus. “You could put your leg around me?” she suggested, grinning.

Magnus laughed and turned to face her. “If mall security come and yell at us for being inappropriate I’m blaming you,” he said as he loosely wrapped his leg around her.

Izzy held onto his thigh, putting her free hand on his waist to make sure he wouldn’t fall. She turned to grin at Clary, who took a few pictures, then Isabelle let go of Magnus’ leg.

“Thank you so much,” she said, laughing as she took her phone back from Clary.

“You’re very welcome,” Magnus said, patting Isabelle’s shoulder. “What’s your name? If you put any of those on Instagram and tag me I’ll look out for you.”

“Isabelle Lightwood,” she said, trying not to get too excited about the fact that there was a chance that Magnus might see her Instagram. She'd have to make sure there was nothing embarrassing on her profile.

“I’ll remember that. Thank you for the photos and the chat,” Magnus said, then he was gone.

“He seemed nice,” Simon said, looking amused.

“He was cute,” Clary said, winking at Isabelle. 

Isabelle laughed and nudged Clary as she took Simon’s hand. “My brother is your boyfriend,” she teased, winking at her.

* * *

 

Alec and Jace’s coffees were long finished when the others came to find them.

“Did you have fun?” Alec asked as they walked out of the cafe. It didn’t look like they had bought much in the mall, they only had a couple of bags between them, but they were all smiling.

“We did. I met someone from Instagram,” Isabelle said. She kept hold of Simon’s hand but linked arms with Alec, grinning up at him. “Did you enjoy your coffee?”

Alec nodded. “It was good. A celebrity from Instagram, or one of those fashion people?”

“One of those fashion people,” Isabelle said. “He was very nice. It’s a shame you weren’t with us,” she teased.

Alec rolled his eyes. Isabelle liked suggesting boyfriends for him, but he doubted he would ever be interested in meeting the people she followed on Instagram. “Sure, sure,” he muttered.

Isabelle laughed and squeezed his arm.

Things felt like they were back to normal. Whenever Magnus crossed Alec’s mind, he felt a horrible little pang in his chest, but then Isabelle would point out a cute boy or would suggest internet dating and he would be laughing again.

They passed the rest of the afternoon on one of those overpriced bus tours. All of them had been in DC before so it wasn’t like they were seeing anything new, but it was still fun. 

They went to a Mexican restaurant for dinner, and ended up staying there until late. By the time they got back to the hotel, they had tried most of the cocktail menu between them. 

They each stumbled back to their own rooms, feeling tipsy but in good spirits.

Simon didn’t manage to get out of his clothes before flopping down on the bed. He fell asleep almost straight away. 

Isabelle suppressed a laugh. He was such a lightweight. She took her makeup off, brushed her teeth and changed into her pyjamas before wrestling Simon out of his jeans. 

That was good enough. Getting him into full pyjamas would be too much work, so she crawled into bed beside him and unlocked her phone. 

She scrolled through the photos she had taken that day. Some were of food, a lot of them were of scenery, but most of them were of her family. 

She smiled as she scrolled through them. She couldn’t help still being worried about Alec – he was her big brother, but she still felt extremely protective of him – but he seemed like he was in better spirits today. 

When she got to the photos of her and Magnus, she had to suppress a laugh. The ones where they were just smiling were cute, but the ones with Magnus’ leg around her were ridiculous in the best way possible. 

She was tired, but she opened up Instagram. It didn’t take long for her to choose a filter and edit the photo, then she added a short caption. 

_ ‘Met @MagnusBane in Washington DC!’  _

She added a flamenco dancer emoji and posted the photo.

* * *

 

When Izzy woke up in the morning, it was to the sound of Simon groaning. 

“Have some water, you lightweight,” she mumbled, rolling over to check the time on her phone. 

She was distracted from doing that, however, by the influx of notifications. 

Her photos usually got a good number of likes, but this one had a lot more than usual – almost 500. 

She unlocked her phone and scrolled through the notifications list. When she neared the bottom, she noticed three things.

First, Magnus Bane had reposted the photo and tagged her in it.

Second, Magnus Bane had followed her.

Third, Magnus Bane had sent her a private message. 

She opened it up, sure it would just be a message thanking her for the photo or something, but she sat up abruptly. 

He had sent her a screenshot of one of her photos. 

A photo of Alec.

She scrolled down a little further to read the message itself. 

_ “Do you know him??” _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *struggles to write a 2000 word essay in a month* 
> 
> *writes 


	3. Chapter 3

Magnus felt like time had slowed to a glacial pace.

His meetings had finished at five, and a few people who had travelled from New York were going to dinner together.

Magnus didn’t feel like socialising, but the thought of going back to his hotel room and being alone for the whole evening was worse.

He really wanted to just get back to New York as soon as possible. Maybe he’d get an earlier train on Sunday.

They ate dinner and had a few drinks afterwards. Part of Magnus wanted to go back to the hotel, but a little voice in the back of his mind – maybe fuelled by alcohol – was saying that Alec might be out as well and maybe they’d bump into each other.

He followed the others through the city, letting their conversations wash over him. They were trying to decide where to go.

They stopped outside a Mexican bar and restaurant.

“We could go here!” one of the women suggested, turning to face the rest of them.

Magnus was inclined to agree. He’d been on his feet a lot during the day, and the balls of his feet were beginning to ache. He knew he shouldn’t have worn boots with a heel.

If they went here, he could sit down and drink as many margaritas as he could afford.

“No way. There’s another place two blocks away,” another woman said, and kept walking.

A few people lingered by the Mexican place, but eventually followed, deciding that it was better to keep the group together.

The bar they went to was okay, but the drinks were overpriced and, honestly, Magnus could have made better drinks himself.

When it was nearly midnight, some of the women stayed out. Magnus usually would have stayed out with them – perhaps found an attractive boy or girl to kiss – but he felt like kissing anyone would be wrong.

He returned to the hotel with some of the others.

He took a long, hot shower. He usually spent his time in the shower trying to sort out his thoughts, but his brain still felt a little hazy from the alcohol and he didn’t want to cry again over a boy he had only known for a few hours.

After washing his hair and his body thoroughly, and grapefruit was the only thing he could smell, he stepped out of the shower and towelled off.

Since he was in the hotel room alone, he didn’t bother with pyjamas. The bed sheets were soft and the room was warm, and Magnus’ hair was mostly dry already.

He lay still for a few minutes, but he knew he wouldn’t be able to fall asleep yet, so he pulled out his phone.

Ragnor had sent him a few pictures of Chairman. Magnus was grateful, and replied to them with a lot of heart emojis.

Facebook didn’t hold his attention for very long, so he opened up Instagram.

After scrolling and liking a few photos of cats and dogs and clothes, he checked his notifications.

Some likes, some comments, some new followers, some mentions.

Usually, he only paid attention to the mentions if he was bored or if something caught his eye. This time, something caught his eye. A mention from ‘ _@IzzyLightwood’_.

He clicked on the photo, smiling when it opened. She had chosen to upload one of the ones with Magnus’ leg wrapped around her.

It was really very cute. He liked it and reposted it, adding his own caption.

_‘Having fun in the capital! @IzzyLightwood’_

He added the nail polish and lipstick emojis and posted it. People started liking it almost straight away.

He ignored the notifications and clicked through to Isabelle’s profile.

Her photos were all very nice, so he followed her. Some of them were of her makeup (which always looked flawless), some were of places around New York and some were of people.

Magnus recognised the boy with glasses and the redheaded girl Isabelle had been with at the shopping mall.

He scrolled a little further, then paused.

He stared at the photo’s thumbnail for a second.

A man with a bow and arrow.

Magnus opened the photo and sat up straight. His heartbeat had sped up and it suddenly felt like the room was spinning.

The man had messy black hair and beautiful eyes and incredible arms.

_Alec._

Magnus tried very hard not to freak out. The photo was just captioned with the bow and arrow emoji.

He screenshotted the photo and set about sending it to Isabelle.

Usually he would have thought of something funny to put in the message, but he just wanted to find out if she knew Alec or if she had found the photo on the internet or something.

For a while, he stared at the screen. Then he remembered that it was 1.30 in the morning and Isabelle would probably be asleep by now.

So instead he went back to Isabelle’s profile and kept scrolling, looking for pictures of Alec.

He found a few of Alec on his own, but if he was in a photo it was usually with Isabelle or who he presumed was their other brother.

Magnus didn’t think he’d ever get to sleep, but soon he made himself lie down again. He still kind of wanted to scream and his heart was still pounding in his chest at the thought of maybe getting a chance to see Alec again, but he wouldn’t know for sure until Isabelle replied.

He tried to keep scrolling through Isabelle’s profile, but drifted off to sleep while gazing at a photo of Alec sitting on some grass in the sun somewhere, a wide grin on his face.

* * *

 

Isabelle was determined not to let herself over think Magnus’ message.

Instead of wondering what it might be about, she sent a quick reply.

_‘That’s my big brother, Alec! Why?’_

Today, she had things to do, though. They had to do a soundcheck at the gig venue, and she had to keep an eye on Jace and Clary so they wouldn’t go and make out somewhere, and she had to keep an eye on Alec to make sure he was okay.

They had breakfast at the hotel and went straight to the gig venue. While Simon and the band practised, Izzy, Clary, Jace and Alec sat by the empty bar, chatting.

They were discussing how many people were likely to show up for the gig when Izzy felt her phone buzz in her jacket pocket.

She pulled it out, trying her best to keep her expression blank when she saw another message from Magnus.

He had sent his phone number and told her to text him. Isabelle supposed that that was a lot easier than using Instagram’s private messaging system.

She copied the number into her phone and sent him a short text so that he had her number.

Clary and Jace were debating which songs the band would play while Alec watched the stage.

Isabelle didn’t have to wait long for a reply from Magnus. She decided they were all distracted enough for her to concentrate on texting.

_Magnus: Thank you, I saved your number! So Alec is your brother? Is he with you now?_

_Isabelle: Yeah, he’s here. Do you know each other?_ _  
_ _Magnus: Sort of. Did he tell you about the train?_   
Isabelle: No? What about the train?

_Magnus: We sat together on the way here. I’ll spare you the details, but I thought we got along and maybe he didn’t feel the same way but I didn’t get a chance to ask for his number or anything and I really regret it, so._

Isabelle glanced up at Alec. Maybe he regretted not asking Magnus for his number as well. That would explain why he had seemed down over the past couple of days.

Half of her wanted to ask Alec about it now, but she knew he wouldn’t tell her anything with Jace and Clary there. She knew she’d have to wait until she could speak to him alone, so looked back to her phone.

_Isabelle: Alec has seemed sort of sad since he got here! He wouldn’t tell anyone why, though, so I’m sure he feels the same way!_

_Magnus: You think so?_

_Isabelle: Absolutely. He rarely tells me anything about his love life. He says he doesn’t want to make me worry._

_Magnus: I only spoke to him for a few hours but that certainly sounds like Alec._

_Magnus: Anyway, do you think he would want to see me again? Maybe he would prefer to just forget about it and move on._

_Isabelle: He’d definitely want to see you again!_

_Isabelle: Well, I haven’t asked him, but I’m 99% sure he’d want to. And it’s worth a try, right?_

_Magnus: Yeah. At least if he rejects me I’ll know there was no chance._

_Isabelle: I’m sure he won’t reject you, don’t worry. You could come to my boyfriend’s band’s show tonight if you want? It’ll be fun, and Alec will be there._

_Magnus: I wish I could but I really do have a work thing tonight. I could try to come after that’s over?_

_Isabelle: That would be great!!! We’ll probably be here until about half nine!_

_Magnus: I’ll try to be there by then. Where is the show?_

Isabelle sent him the address and slid her phone back into her pocket. When she looked up, Alec was watching her.

“You look happy,” he said. “Usually I’d assume you were texting Clary or Simon.”

Isabelle grinned and patted his knee. “Just a friend from work,” she said. After a moment, she decided now might be a good time to try and talk to him again. She stood up and put a hand on Alec’s arm. “Can you come with me to get a drink?”

Alec nodded and stood, following her out of the venue.

“How are you feeling today?” she asked, watching his face to try and gauge his reaction.

Alec rolled his eyes fondly. “I’m fine, Izzy. Really. How are you?”

“I’m fine,” Isabelle said. “Are you sure you were okay on Thursday, though? You seemed upset about something.”

“I was…kind of upset. But I’m fine now,” Alec insisted. He wasn’t completely fine, of course, but as long as he wasn’t thinking about Magnus he could pretend.

Isabelle rested her head against Alec’s shoulder as they walked. “Was it about a boy?” she asked, trying to act as natural as possible.

Alec glanced down at her. “Did Jace tell you?”

Isabelle lifted her head again to look at his face. “Did you talk to Jace about this? What did you tell him?”

“Nothing! I only told him that it might have been about a boy,” Alec said quickly. “Trust me, Izzy, it’s really fine. Nothing to worry about.”

Isabelle raised her eyebrows. “Did someone break up with you?” she asked. Maybe suggesting other situations would make him tell her.

“No. I haven’t had a boyfriend for months, you know that,” Alec said. “I’ll talk to you about it when we’re back home, okay? I just want to…not think about it for now.”

Isabelle squeezed his arm. “Whatever you say. You know I’m always here for you, though,” she told him.

Alec kissed her hair. “I know. Thanks, Izzy.”

* * *

 

Magnus wasn’t sure he’d be able to get through tonight’s meeting.

The thought of seeing Alec again was simultaneously terrifying and exciting.

On one hand, they might see each other and keep talking and maybe become something else. On the other hand, Alec might be annoyed about weird train guy finding him through his sister.

Really, Magnus just didn’t want to think about it. He didn’t like thinking about the possibility of being rejected, but he didn’t want to get his hopes up, either.

He always tried to make himself look nice for work, of course, but he stared at himself for a while before doing his makeup.

On the train he hadn’t been dressed particularly fancy. He’d just been wearing a black shirt and jeans – his coat was the main feature of his outfit and he hadn’t even been wearing that most of the time – with only eyeliner and mascara on his face.

He still wanted to make an effort for Alec, though, so he set about making his face look as good as possible.

At least Isabelle was lovely and she was helping him out. He had no idea if she would tell Alec about talking to him, but either way, it was more than he could have hoped for to be able to see Alec again.

He knew he wouldn’t be able to concentrate at all for the duration of the stupid networking event for work. He hated those anyway, and it would probably be torture having to talk to these superior-acting people when he knew he would be seeing Alec soon.

When he was dressed and his hair was done and his makeup was as good as it was going to get, he took a few deep breaths.

He just had to get through dinner with his co workers and a few hours of champagne and small talk and then he could see Alec.

“You can do this,” he told himself, staring at himself for another second before setting off to meet the others in the hotel lobby.

* * *

 

Even if Alec hadn’t especially liked Simon when they had first met, he’d always thought his band was pretty good.

They were sitting backstage with Simon and the band. The venue already sounded pretty busy, and there was only a few minutes before they had to start playing, so they were getting ready to go back to the bar to watch.

Isabelle gave Simon a hug that looked suffocating, kissed his cheek, and then they could leave. They were just about to emerge into the hall when Isabelle grabbed Alec’s arm. “I left my phone. Can you get it for me? I want to see them come out.”

“Yeah. See you at the bar?” he asked, turning back to find her phone.

Simon and the others had just left to go onstage, so Alec had the room to himself. It didn’t take long to find Isabelle’s phone – the bright screen was illuminating the corner of the room.

He picked it up, smiling at the photo of her and Clary from the previous day. He flicked through the photos as he walked, then he froze.

He stared at a photo for a moment.

Magnus?

When he zoomed in on the photo, he felt like he’d been hollowed out.

Why was Magnus in one of Isabelle’s photos? For a moment, Alec was annoyed at his sister, but his annoyance disappeared almost as quickly as it had come. She didn’t know Magnus and Alec even knew each other, let alone that Alec had been thinking about Magnus all weekend.

He couldn’t help wondering how Isabelle knew Magnus. They’d probably met through fashion or something.

He scrolled back to the photo of Isabelle and Clary and went to find the others.

Seeing Magnus’ face again – even in a photo – had been unexpected. Part of him wanted to ask Izzy about it, but he knew he wouldn’t be able to ask her about it without getting upset and embarrassing himself.

He found the three of them sitting at the edge of the bar. Simon’s band was already playing, and the crowd watching them was growing as more people went towards the stage.

“Here’s your phone,” Alec said, handing it over to her.

Isabelle grinned, but her face dropped slightly when she saw Alec. “Are you okay?”

Maybe Alec wasn’t as good at hiding his feelings as he thought he was. “Fine,” he agreed, leaning against the bar beside her. “Was the opening good?”

“Yeah, they were great. People seem to like them,” Isabelle said, still holding onto his arm. “Are you sure you’re okay, Alec? You look pale.”

Alec forced himself to smile, glancing towards the stage when a new song started. “Absolutely. Do you want to dance?” he asked.

Isabelle didn’t look remotely convinced, but she stood up and walked with Alec to the back of the crowd where they swayed together.

Alec couldn’t really stop thinking about Magnus. Most of Simon’s band’s songs were love songs, and he kept thinking about how if he hadn’t been such an idiot he could be here with magnus right now.

Not that he didn’t enjoy Isabelle’s company, but even she seemed distracted. She kept looking over her shoulder at the entrance to the venue.

“Are you expecting someone?” Alec asked, tugging gently at a lock of her hair.

Isabelle shook her head. “No. Why?”

Maybe Isabelle could always tell when there was something wrong with Alec, but that went both ways. Or maybe Isabelle was just a bad liar.

Alec raised his eyebrows. “Are you sure?”

Isabelle nodded. “Of course I’m sure, Alec,” she said firmly.

Of course that wasn’t strictly true. It was still pretty early in the night, but she was excited to see Magnus.

Part of her still wanted to ask Alec about it, but she didn’t want to ruin the surprise, or risk Alec being disappointed if Magnus didn’t show up.

There was also the risk that Alec was upset about something completely different and she had completely misinterpreted things.

If that happened, she would feel awful. Then Magnus would have got his hopes up about seeing Alec again and he would be disappointed and upset and it would be Isabelle’s fault.

She knew her brother, though, and she was sure she was right.

Whenever she felt a gust of wind from the doors being opened, she glanced over her shoulder, half-expecting to see Magnus.

When the band started playing the final song of the set, Isabelle suddenly felt anxious. What if Magnus didn’t come?

Alec wouldn’t be disappointed because he hadn’t known, but Isabelle would still feel sort of guilty. There wasn’t much else she could do, but now she felt almost responsible for getting them together again.

Isabelle looked at the door even more frequently. She was sure Magnus would show up. Maybe he got lost on the way to the venue. But he would show up.

The song finished.

She felt like her heart was speeding up.

Alec had seemed in a better mood today, but since the show started he had seemed sad again. She wasn’t sure what had made him sad, but it felt even more important to cheer him up again.

The band left the stage.

They still had time, though. The band had to pack up their things and her, Jace, Clary and (most importantly) Alec would be hanging around the bar to wait for them.

As the crowd started to thin out, she and Alec returned to the bar.

“Do you want to go somewhere else now? Simon can come and meet us there,” Jace suggested.

“No!” Isabelle said quickly. Perhaps too quickly, but they needed to stay here if they wanted to see Magnus. “I mean, you know what Simon is like. He never checks his phone. We should wait for him.”

Jace looked a little startled, but he settled back down on his stool.

Alec found it difficult to concentrate on the conversation. Without the music and the crowd as a distraction, he could think of nothing but Magnus.  
He’d been sitting in a coffee shop while Izzy had been talking to Magnus. And he’d had no idea.

Simon soon emerged from backstage. Isabelle hugged him, but she still seemed distracted.

“Shall we go?” Simon asked.

“We could stay here for a while!” Isabelle suggested, leaning against the bar. “I mean, it’s nice. Maybe Simon can get us free drinks since he’s in the band.”

Simon looked confused (which wasn’t a rare thing), but he was trying not to let it show. He wasn’t doing a good job of hiding it. “It’s closing, Izzy,” he said, laughing nervously. “Maybe we can come back tomorrow and try to get free drinks.”

Isabelle looked like she wanted to keep protesting, but she sighed and picked up her coat from the back of a stool. “Okay. I’m just going to the bathroom,” she said.

Maybe if she could make them stay for just a few more minutes, Magnus would arrive on time.

Alec watched her go, frowning. “Is she alright?” he asked.

Simon shrugged. “I have no idea. Was she okay when we were playing?”

“She seemed fine,” Alec agreed, pulling his own jacket on and folding his arms across himself. There were still a few people lingering in the hall, and people kept coming in and out, but Alec didn’t pay them much attention.

The others started talking about the show. As always, Simon seemed sort of flustered at all the compliments, but he was grinning widely.

Isabelle returned after a few minutes. She smiled at them, but it didn’t reach her eyes. “Shall we go?” she asked.

Simon nodded and wrapped an arm around her shoulders, squeezing gently. “Yeah. You can choose where to go if you want?” he suggested.

Isabelle nodded but she didn’t look particularly enthusiastic about the idea.

Alec was worried about her, but he would wait and see if she perked up when they found somewhere to go. Plus, Simon was annoyingly good at talking to people when they were upset, so he would handle it well.

When they got outside, Isabelle kept looking up and down the street. Alec thought she might just be looking for somewhere to go, but she was frowning and she looked like she was determined to spot something specific rather than just a decent-looking bar.

They had been walking for a few minutes when Jace stopped walking.

Alec and Clary both stopped with him, but Simon and Izzy were a few steps ahead, and only turned around when they noticed that the others had stopped.

“What’s wrong?” Alec asked. First Izzy was acting strange, now Jace? He wasn’t sure how much of this he could handle.

“My phone,” Jace muttered, patting his pockets. “Shit. I think I left it at the bar.”

Isabelle suddenly perked up. “Alec could go and get it!”

They all turned to her.

“Why me?” Alec asked, shoving his hands into his pockets.

“Well…it’s…the place might be closed by now. And you’re charming. You’ll be able to convince them to let you in,” Isabelle said, reaching over to pat his arm.

Alec just stared at her for a moment. “Izzy, I love you, but I don’t think most people would think of me as being the more charming one.”

“You’re very charming! You have a lovely smile,” Izzy insisted. “I know a lot of people who can’t say no to a smile like that.”

Alec raised his eyebrows at her.

Jace patted his shoulder and started walking backwards. “You’re very charming, Alec, but I’m gonna go and get it. I’ll catch up with you guys. Text me if you choose somewhere,” he said before turning and starting to walk.

Isabelle sighed softly and turned to start walking with Simon again, and Alec and Clary followed a few steps behind them.

* * *

 

Jace arrived back at the concert venue after a few minutes. The place was just about to close, but when he explained what had happened, they let him in.

He found his phone sitting on the bar where he’d left it. He let out a sigh of relief and picked it up, texting Clary to say he was on his way to find them again.

He tucked his phone into his pocket and thanked the lady who had let him in. She talked to him for a short while about the band – she was impressed that he knew Simon, and said how well the band had done – before Jace left.

As he stepped out of the door, he almost ran into a very tall man wearing a suit and makeup.

“Sorry,” the man said breathlessly.

“It’s fine. Uh, the place is just closing up,” Jace said, glancing over his shoulder to where they were still clearing up.

The man nodded. “Yeah. I thought so. I’m looking for someone,” he said before neatly stepping around Jace into the building.

He seemed in a hurry to get to the venue before it closed. Maybe he was playing there tomorrow night or something. He certainly looked like he could be in show business.

Jace set off at a jog to catch up with the others.

* * *

 

Magnus felt lucky to be able to work in fashion, but tonight he hated his job.

He kept trying to slip away and try to get to Isabelle and Alec, but he kept getting caught in conversations with more people and no matter how hard he tried he couldn’t seem to get away.

When he finally managed to escape, it was half past nine. He found Isabelle’s text with the venue and entered it into his phone.

Google Maps told him it would take twenty minutes to get there. Magnus kind of wanted to cry: Isabelle had said they would be leaving at about half nine. There was no way he would make it in time.

He supposed they might still be there if he was lucky, so he started walking briskly.

As he got closer, he started running. He didn’t know what he’d do if Isabelle and Alec weren’t there.

The thought of seeing Alec again had gotten Magnus through the day, and he was going back to New York tomorrow. He really didn’t know how much longer he would be able to handle not knowing how Alec felt.

He slowed down as he neared the venue. His feet and lungs were burning, and he could only hope that his hair and makeup were still presentable, but then he bumped into someone as he entered the building.

“Sorry,” he panted. Usually he would have been more apologetic, but it felt like his whole body was on fire and he just wanted to get inside and find Alec.

He dashed past the blond man and into the hall.

It was nearly empty. There were still some members of staff hanging around, clearing empty cups and things from the bar, but no Alec.

A member of staff approached him. “We’re just closing. Do you need something?” she asked.

Magnus shook his head, then nodded. “Actually, i was wondering if anyone was backstage,” he said. Maybe the band were still backstage and maybe Isabelle and Alec were with them.

“No, the band already left. Sorry,” she said.

Magnus thanked her and pressed a hand to his forehead. What was he supposed to do now? He pulled his phone out of his pocket. Maybe he could text Isabelle and ask where they were.

He pressed the button a few times, but the screen remained black. When he held the lock button down, the empty battery sign popped up.

Magnus groaned. He wanted nothing more than to curl up and cry, but he shoved his phone back into his pocket and started walking out of the hall.

Then he froze.

The blond guy.

He had been on Isabelle’s Instagram.

He had been in group pictures with Alec.

Even though his heart was still pounding in his chest and his lungs were still burning, Magnus dashed out of the building.

He hadn’t seen where the man had gone.

To the right of the venue there were shops, and most of them were closed.

To the left, there were bars and restaurants.

Magnus turned left and started running as fast as he could without falling.

Why had he worn the stupid heeled boots again? If it wouldn’t have taken so much time, he would have taken them off.

He was just starting to consider giving up and lying at the side of the road to cry when he saw someone with a head of bright red hair.

He immediately thought back to seeing Isabelle at the shopping mall and the redheaded girl who had taken their photo.

Magnus’ mind felt sort of fuzzy from drinking too much champagne at work, and he was sure he would fall flat on his face if he kept running for much longer, but as he got closer he saw the blond guy next to the redhead, and next to him…

“Alec!” he yelled.

Alec didn’t turn around.

Magnus’ throat was burning whenever he breathed and each step sent a stab of pain through his body, but seeing Alec made him keep going.

“Alec!” he yelled again, his voice breaking.

Alec looked over his shoulder.

Magnus felt like he was going to collapse.

Alec turned around properly. His eyes were wide.

Magnus really did feel like he might faint. He stopped running, swaying on his feet where he stood.

They stared at each other for a moment, then Alec started walking towards him. He started slowly, but broke into a run when he got closer to Magnus.

The edges of Magnus’ vision were kind of fuzzy, and all he could see was Alec. His legs felt heavy but he took a few steps towards Alec and then they came together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> :) :) :) 
> 
> thank goodness for Isabelle Lightwood!!
> 
> my poor little Magnus, he's so lonely and he had nobody to look after him when he was sad about Alec :( at least now he might get as many hugs as he wants!
> 
> thank you SO much for all your comments, I know I say it a lot, but really, this fic started out as a caffeine-fuelled impulse but the response has blown me away!! <3 I'm glad you seem to enjoy it, and I hope this lives up to your expectations!! <3


	4. Chapter 4

“Is Izzy okay?” Clary murmured.

Jace had just turned back to get his phone, and Isabelle was walking beside Simon, their heads resting together.

Alec shrugged. “I have no idea. She seemed fine earlier but now…” he trailed off and shook his head. “Has she said anything to you?”

“No. I haven’t had a chance to talk to her properly,” Clary said. 

They could hear Simon and Izzy talking softly to each other, but it was impossible to make out what they were saying.

“Maybe she’s just tired,” Alec suggested, although that was highly unlikely. Even when Izzy was tired she was more talkative than this.

Clary didn’t look convinced, but she nodded. “Maybe. She did plan this entire weekend,” she said. 

Alec was glad Clary was there, really. He loved Izzy and Jace more than anything, of course, but he’d always been the one to keep his siblings grounded. Simon was fun to talk to, but he made a lot of obscure references and it was hard to keep up sometimes.

Clary, on the other hand, was very easy to talk to and extremely down-to-earth. As Jace’s girlfriend, she had to be. 

They had been walking slowly, so it didn’t take long for Jace to catch up to them again. 

“Did you get your phone?” Clary asked as Jace stepped between her and Alec.

Jace pulled it out of his pocket and wiggled it at her. “Yup. I just left it on the bar,” he said, wrapping an arm around her shoulders.

Clary rolled her eyes and leaned into him. “You should attach it to your clothes. You need to stop leaving your things everywhere,” she chided playfully.

Alec only paid half his attention to their conversation. He would respond if they spoke to him, but he wasn’t listening to them argue for the hundredth time about whether or not Jace was forgetful. 

He knew Izzy worried about him, but usually he just brushed her off and insisted that he was fine.

Now that the tables were turned, though, he just wanted to sit his sister down and make her talk to him. 

Maybe he was being paranoid and she really was just tired, but something told him it was something more than that. Even when she was tired she made an effort to be upbeat, especially if they were all going out together like this.

There was a yell from behind them.

Alec didn’t pay it much attention. It was nighttime and they were in a city on a street full of bars. People tried to find their friends all the time.

He started thinking about Izzy again, but then there was another yell, closer this time.

And it was his name.

Alec frowned and looked over his shoulder. It was probably just another Alec. There was nobody else who would be calling his name.

But there was. 

Alec was sure he was hallucinating. He turned around properly. 

Magnus was running towards them, but he stumbled to a stop when Alec turned around. He looked exhausted and unsteady on his feet, but he was dressed impeccably and his makeup was flawless, even if his hair was starting to flop down over his face.

The cynical part of Alec’s brain was certain that it was a dream. If he went to Magnus, he would disappear as soon as he touched him. 

But Magnus looked like he was about to fall over so Alec started walking towards him. It still felt like he was in a dream. He had entirely forgotten about Izzy and the others; his only focus was Magnus.

Alec was about halfway there when he started running. It had been two days of regret and trying not to think about Magnus, but now he was here.

Magnus practically collapsed into his arms. Alec held onto him tightly.

He was leaning heavily against Alec and his narrow chest was heaving as he caught his breath. 

Alec wanted to say something but he couldn’t find the words. He just held onto Magnus, rubbing up and down his sides gently.

Eventually Magnus pulled back and straightened up, his hands still on Alec’s shoulders.

“Hi,” he said, a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth.

Alec laughed. He couldn’t really believe that Magnus was here. “Hi,” he breathed. He knew he was probably grinning like an idiot but he couldn’t stop himself. “Are you okay?” 

Magnus nodded and ran a hand through his hair. “Yeah. Sorry. I don’t think I’ve ever run that much in my whole life,” he said.

Alec was tempted to reach up and brush a lock of hair away from Magnus’ forehead, but he kept his hands on his waist instead. “It’s okay. I’m…uh, I’m really happy to see you. I tried to find you after you left at the train station,” he explained. 

Magnus closed his eyes for a moment and huffed out a laugh. “Of course you did. As soon as I left I turned back to try and find you.”

Alec squeezed Magnus’ waist. “So we were just being idiots?” he asked.

“I think so,” Magnus agreed. “So, uh. Do you want my number? Or we could go on a date? If you want?”

A wave of happiness swept across Alec. It felt too good to be true that he was getting this second chance with Magnus.

Before he could stop himself, he leaned forward and pressed his lips to Magnus’. His lips were warm and his hands tightened on Alec’s shoulders, and when they pulled apart to breathe, Magnus’ eyes were wide.

“Sorry,” Alec said automatically. “I didn’t…if you don’t…” he trailed off when he saw that Magnus was grinning. 

He stopped talking partly because he realised there was no point in apologising, and partly because Magnus’ smile was one of the cutest things Alec had ever seen and he wasn’t sure if he was capable of continuing to talk.

Magnus leaned forward and kissed him, sliding his hands down to squeeze Alec’s biceps.

Alec had to suppress a laugh, but it was suddenly a lot easier to focus on the kiss when he felt Magnus’ tongue brush against his lips.

Soon they pulled apart, gazing into each other’s eyes for a moment.

“Do you want to go for a drink?” Alec asked, letting go of Magnus’ waist to gently push a lock of hair away from his face.

Magnus nodded and let his hands drop from Alec’s arms. “Definitely. Anywhere you want to go?” he asked as he took Alec’s hand and linked their fingers together.

When they turned to start walking, Alec stopped in his tracks. 

Izzy, Jace, Clary and Simon were still standing where Alec had left them. 

Izzy waved enthusiastically. 

Alec glanced at Magnus. “I apologise in advance. They’ll probably be embarrassing,” he said as they started walking towards them.

Magnus just squeezed his fingers. “I already met your sister,” he said. “She seems lovely.”

Alec thought back to the photo on Isabelle’s phone. “Do you know each other?”

“She follows me on Instagram,” Magnus explained. “We just bumped into each other in the shopping mall.” 

Isabelle had mentioned meeting someone from Instagram. Alec wanted to laugh. He had been so close to meeting Magnus and hadn’t even known it.

“That’s insane,” Alec mumbled, reaching up to push his hair away from his forehead. He looked at Izzy’s bright smile and realisation dawned on him. “Did she have something to do with you being here tonight?”

By now, Isabelle was close enough to hear them. “I might have done,” she said, wrapping Alec and Magnus in a hug. 

Magnus patted her back, smiling at Alec over the top of her head. “I saw a picture of you on Isabelle’s profile so I sent her a message. And she was more than willing to help me find you,” he explained.

“Did you tell her about the train?” Alec asked, letting go of Isabelle.

“Not everything,” Magnus said with a wink.

Isabelle looked between them. “Did something happen already? I thought you said you just sat next to each other,” she said.

Alec and Magnus exchanged a glance. 

“I didn’t think you’d appreciate it if I told her the whole thing,” Magnus said.

“You thought right,” Alec agreed, looking back to Isabelle.

“What happened on the train? Did you kiss already? That looked like a good kiss,” Isabelle said. 

The others were a few steps behind her. Simon looked excited, while Jace and Clary looked happy but confused.

“Is that your boyfriend?” Simon asked.

Alec glanced at Magnus. “I don’t know yet,” he said. Magnus squeezed his hand and Isabelle reached up to pat Alec’s cheek.

“Why don’t you go somewhere with Magnus, and we’ll leave you in peace?” she suggested.

“That would be fantastic. Thank you, Izzy,” Alec said. He loved his family – especially Izzy for bringing Magnus back to him – but right now he just wanted to be with Magnus. 

Izzy leaned up to kiss Alec’s cheek, then Magnus’. “Text if you need anything. Have fun,” she said before turning back to the others. Jace immediately started asking questions, but Simon wiggled his fingers at them in a wave. 

Magnus waved back, but Alec pulled him by the hand to find somewhere.

“Are you picky? Because I think I might fall over if I stay on my feet for much longer,” Magnus said, leaning against Alec as they walked. 

Alec wrapped his arm around Magnus’ waist and looked into the window of the first bar they passed. “Here?” he suggested. 

They went inside and go a table upstairs by the window.  

“How long were you running for?” Alec asked, leaning over to read the drinks menu with Magnus.

“I have no idea. I left work at half nine and I think I got to the concert venue at about quarter to ten,” Magnus explained. “I bumped into the blond one on my way out and recognised him from Isabelle’s Instagram and ran after you.”

Alec raised his eyebrows. “That’s a lot of running. I’m impressed,” he said. He leaned sideways to eye Magnus’ shoes. The heels looked like they were only a couple of inches, but Alec thought heels any bigger than a centimetre or two were too big. “Your feet must hurt.”

Magnus shrugged and reached up to brush the back of his hand against Alec’s cheek. “They’re not bad now. I don’t think I’ll be able to walk tomorrow, though.”   
“If you’re nice to me I’ll carry you,” Alec teased.

Magnus raised his eyebrow, his smile widening. “Are you implying that you’d like to spend the night with me, Alexander?” 

Alec sat up straight. He couldn’t seem to get his words out right, but he eventually managed to say, “I didn’t mean that!” 

Magnus giggled – actually giggled – and Alec had to stop himself from grabbing him and kissing him. “I was only joking,” he said, bumping their knees together under the table. “Although I definitely wouldn’t mind if we did spend the night together.”

Alec was saved from attempting to respond to that by someone coming to take their orders. They both ordered drinks, and Magnus ordered a plate of cheesy fries.

“They’re my guilty pleasure,” Magnus said sheepishly when the waitress had gone to get their things. 

After that it felt like they were back on the train. They fell into conversation easily, interrupted only when the drinks and food came.

Magnus managed to get through half of his cheesy fries before he slid the plate over to Alec. “Please help me.”

Alec was more than happy to help him eat. “It’s impressive that you managed to eat that many.”

Magnus laughed and knocked his foot against Alec’s ankle gently. “I had an early dinner. And there wasn’t much food. It was one of those fancy restaurants where you pay thirty dollars for three peas on your plate.” 

“You should have been with us,” Alec said, smiling up at him. “We didn’t have time before Simon’s show to go to a proper restaurant so we just ordered pizza.”

Magnus whined. “I wish I’d been there. The work thing sucked as well. The only upside was the free champagne and nibbles.”

Alec snorted. “Nibbles?” 

“Yeah. Vol au vents and stuff. I tried to eat as much as possible but my boss told me off when she found me carrying eleven tempura prawns,” Magnus said. 

Alec laughed at the mental image. “Did you really go and talk to fancy fashion industry people with eleven prawns?” 

Magnus nodded. “They came and spoke to me despite the prawns, so I didn’t think it was too bad,” he said with a shrug.

Alec automatically reached up to brush a bit of cheese away from the corner of Magnus’ lips with his thumb.

Magnus stared at him for a moment before leaning over to kiss his lips gently. “I’m sorry about the other day, Alec.”

“Sorry?” Alec echoed. “What do you mean? You don’t have anything to be sorry for.”

“I do. I should have asked you out. I liked you, I was sure you liked me, but I freaked out a little bit and missed my chance,” Magnus said, running his index finger across Alec’s knuckles. 

“It wasn’t your responsibility to ask me out,” Alec said firmly, catching Magnus’ hand in both of his own. “I talked myself out of it as well. I thought you were out of my league. I still think you’re out of my league, really.”

Magnus looked surprised. “Out of your league? Alexander, you’re ridiculous. Look at you. You’re an angel. If anything, you’re out of my league.”

Alec nearly choked on a cheesy fry. “You must be joking,” he said, shaking his head. “You’re…well, you look like you. And you dress so well. And your hair and makeup and everything look so good. I just get out of bed every morning and put on the first thing I find.”

“And you look so beautiful without needing to make an effort,” Magnus said firmly. “I need to stand in front of a mirror for half an hour every morning to look like this. You don’t need to try because you’re naturally beautiful.”

Alec rolled his eyes. “Yeah, because I’m sure you look terrible without makeup,” he said dryly. 

They spent a while going around in circles bickering about who was more attractive, but they settled it by feeding each other the rest of the cheesy fries. 

Two cocktails later, they left the bar, Magnus holding onto Alec’s arm as they walked together. 

“How are your feet?” Alec asked, letting Magnus use him to balance.

“Let’s just say I’ll definitely be getting a taxi home,” Magnus said, squeezing Alec’s arm.

Alec hesitated for a moment before speaking. “You can come back to our hotel if you want. I mean, a taxi will be expensive, and it’s late…” he trailed off and shrugged. Now that he’d said it, inviting Magnus to the hotel seemed too forward.

His worries disappeared when Magnus smiled at him, though. “I’d love that, Alec,” he said, squeezing his arm tight. “Where is it?” 

“It’s about five or ten minutes away from here,” Alec said. “Would you like a piggyback?” 

Magnus grinned again, and it lit up his face. “I definitely would. Will I be too heavy?”

Alec turned his back to Magnus and squatted down. “Try me.”

“Sorry if I break your back,” Magnus said before putting his hands on Alec’s shoulders and climbing onto his back. 

Alec stood easily, holding onto Magnus’ thighs. He was tall but not particularly heavy, so it was easy to carry him. 

It was slightly hard not to get distracted when Magnus kept wrapping his arms around his neck and kissing his cheeks. It was even harder when Magnus wrapped his legs tighter around Alec’s waist. 

They stopped at a convenience store to get Magnus a toothbrush and toothpaste, then they got back to the hotel, and Alec let Magnus hop down from his back. 

“Do you want to stop by Izzy’s room? She should have stuff for you to take your makeup off,” Alec suggested as the lift carried them to their floor.

Magnus nodded. “That sounds good to me. Will she tease you about having me here to stay the night?” 

“Of course she will. But I can handle that,” Alec assured him. He put a hand on Magnus’ arm when they got to Izzy and Simon’s door and knocked gently. 

After a few seconds, Simon opened the door. “Oh! Hi. Did you need Izzy?” he asked, looking between Alec and Magnus. 

“Yeah. We just need makeup remover,” Magnus said. 

Isabelle appeared at the door when she heard Magnus’ voice. “You’re staying over?” she asked, leaning into the bathroom to grab a bottle of makeup remover. 

“My hotel is half an hour away, taxis are expensive, you know,” Magnus said, smiling innocently at her as he took the bottle.

“I’m sure those are the only reasons,” Isabelle agreed, grinning. “Have fun. I’ll text you in the morning but it’s fine if you want to go and have a breakfast date or whatever!” 

Alec rolled his eyes fondly and gave Isabelle a one-armed hug before she bid them goodnight.

Alec’s room was a few doors down, and he scrunched up his nose when he opened the door. “Sorry I left it in sort of a mess. I wasn’t expecting company.” 

Magnus squeezed Alec’s arm and wandered into the room, sitting on the bed to take his shoes off. “Don’t worry, I don’t mind an unmade bed,” he teased, letting out a long sigh of relief when both shoes were off. 

Alec laughed and went to sit beside him. “What a relief,” he teased, leaning down to peck his lips.

What started out as a peck lasted half an hour. When they finally pulled apart and looked at the time, Magnus sat up carefully and pressed a final kiss to Alec’s jaw. 

“Bed?” he suggested, running his fingers gently through Alec’s hair. 

Alec wasn’t sure he’d be able to say no to anything with Magnus stroking his hair like that. 

“Do you have a shirt or something I can wear for pyjamas?” Magnus asked. 

“Of course. Hold on,” Alec mumbled. He rolled across the bed and dug through his bag until he found a spare t-shirt rolled up at the bottom. “Do you need anything else?”

Magnus shook his head. “As long as you’re okay with me wearing underwear as pyjama bottoms,” he agreed before standing and going into the bathroom. 

Alec was sure his brain was going to short-circuit. 

The thought of Magnus wearing his shirt was enough, but wearing his shirt and underwear and nothing else was nothing short of an overload.

He quickly changed into his own pyjamas and sat on the bed to wait for Magnus in case he lost all ability to function when he emerged. 

Alec had definitely been right to do that. 

Magnus came out of the bathroom after about ten minutes, and it was almost like a completely different person. 

His face was free of makeup, but no less beautiful. Alec’s shirt was too big on him but he still looked perfect, and his legs looked impossibly long. 

His hair had fallen out of its sleek style when they were kissing, but now it looked even fluffier and Alec could have kissed him forever. 

Magnus climbed into bed beside him and Alec wrapped his arms tightly around him. “Still think I’m out of your league?” he murmured, raising his eyebrows.

Alec kissed him hard. He tasted like toothpaste. When they pulled apart, both of them were grinning. “You’re so far out of my league. But if you’re willing to stick with me, I won’t complain,” he teased.

Magnus rolled his eyes fondly. 

They tried to stay awake for as long as possible, watching shitty movies on TV and telling each other silly stories, but they soon fell asleep curled around each other, feeling more content than they had felt in a long while.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was going to say I wasn't happy with this chapter but I just reread it while editing and I forgot most of what I wrote, so I am sort of happy with it!! 
> 
> i seem to have a lot of weaknesses but one of my #1 things guaranteed to break me is Alec seeing Magnus without makeup for the first time, and Magnus being all self-conscious but Alec being completely blown away by how beautiful this ridiculous man is
> 
> ANYWAY, thank you all SO much for all your comments on the last chapter, when I woke up to 25 things in my inbox I was extremely excited!! I'm glad you've all enjoyed this fic so much!! There will be either one or two more chapters depending on how things go, then we will be back to normal proceedings!! <3 <3

**Author's Note:**

> What am I doing???? I have an ongoing multichapter fic??? Why am I doing this to myself???
> 
> This is inspired by one of those prompt posts on Tumblr, and the prompt was: "you were sat in my reserved train seat and refused to move so i sat on your lap and now we’re both too annoyed and awkwardly turned on to move"
> 
> As always, I intended this to be a short little oneshot, but my brain had other ideas!! (This won't be like a 30-chapter extravaganza, I think it will be 3 chapters!!!)
> 
> I hope you enjoy!! <3


End file.
